All Things PLC Magazine, Volume 6, Issue 3 by Solution Tree

all things

PLC M A G A Z I N E

Vo l u m e 6 , I s s u e 3

Features The Leader’s Role in Collaborative Meetings Jasmine Kullar The importance of leaders communicating their expectations

with collaborative teams.

Addressing the Four Pillars of PLCs Using the High Reliability Schools Framework Philip B. Warrick and Amber Freeman

Establishing a schoolwide mentoring program for student success.

The 5 Dysfunctions of a Team Nathaniel Provencio A deeper look at Patrick Lencioni’s (2002) book, The Five Dysfunctions of a Team, in the context of a PLC.

Teachers to the Rescue Tricia Brickner The Jefferson Elementary School story.

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To o l s & R e s o u rc e s fo r I n s p i ra t i o n a n d E xce l l e n ce

First Thing

Embracing dissonance in a PLC.

ICYMI

In case you missed it.

FAQs about PLCs

Student accountability.

Learning Champion

Paula Maeker, the Mary Poppins of PLCs.

The Recommender

What’s equity got to do with it?

Data Quest

Universal screening.

Skill Shop

Balancing goals with well-being.

Research Report

In search of best practice.

Why I Love PLCs A journey worth taking.

all things

First Thing

M A G A Z I N E

in a PLC at Work

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SOLUTION TREE: CEO Jeffrey C. Jones

PRESIDENT Edmund M. Ackerman SOLUTION TREE PRESS:

PRESIDENT & PUBLISHER Douglas M. Rife ART DIRECTOR Rian Anderson PAGE DESIGNERS Laura Cox, Abigail Bowen, Kelsey Hergül, Fabiana Cochran, Rian Anderson

AllThingsPLC (ISSN 2476-2571 [print], 2476-258X [Online]) is published four times a year by Solution Tree Press. 555 North Morton Street Bloomington, IN 47404 800.733.6786 (toll free) / 812.336.7700 FAX: 812.336.7790 email: info@SolutionTree.com SolutionTree.com POSTMASTER Send address changes to Solution Tree, 555 North Morton Street, Bloomington, IN, 47404 Copyright © 2022 by Solution Tree Press

Embracing Dissonance Jeanne Spiller

issonance. It’s inevitable and should be embraced by collaborative teams who engage in PLC at Work practices. So, what exactly is dissonance, and why should collaborative teams embrace it?

Leon Festinger (1957) coined the term cognitive dissonance. He described it as inconsistency among beliefs or behaviors causing an uncomfortable psychological tension. It is the discomfort that is felt when what we know or believe is not in harmony with our behavior or our actions. The theory suggests that as humans, we like our attitudes and behaviors to be in harmony, and when they are not, we want to restore the balance as quickly as possible. Collaborative teams in a PLC will resolve the balance in many different ways. Some of the ways will restore the balance quickly and are productive, often leading to positive change. Other ways will also restore the balance quickly but may not be as productive and often lead to preserving the status quo. There are a few ways this could go. Which one will you foster and embrace on your collaborative team? Let’s use the following example to explore this further and consider the different ways teams might respond to the dissonance. In an effort to keep the school mission alive and well and remind staff that the mission is the foundation that sets the tone and provides direction for the work of collaborative teams, the principal revisited the school mission statement at a staff meeting. The school mission states, “Our mission is to educate all students to the highest levels of academic achievement, to enable them to reach and expand their potential, and to prepare them to become productive, responsible, ethical, creative, and compassionate members of society.” She gave teams time to consider their actions and behaviors with the mission as the context. The principal explained that the mission is a guide and a promise, that it communicates the school’s core purpose and commitment, and then asked the teams to engage in a discussion about the ways in which they felt the school and their team are in alignment with the mission and the ways in which they are not. You could feel the tension in the room. Dissonance was abounding. It became clear that some teachers were feeling a disconnect between what was communicated in the mission and what was actually happening in the school and on their team.

As collaborative teams began to consider the mission, some teams embraced the dissonance and used it to plan next steps, some rationalized it by blaming factors outside of their control, and others avoided it all together by discounting the mission (Brown, 2022). Let’s take a look at how this plays out as two teams consider the alignment between the school’s and their teams’ actions and the mission statement. The discussion on Team A quickly turned to many factors that make it difficult for them to live the mission. They discussed factors such as limited support from families, students who don’t comply and don’t care, and the teachers from the previous year who didn’t do what they should have to ensure that students learned. They began to question why the school mission statement communicated something that was impossible. Ultimately, they resolved the dissonance by blaming factors beyond their control and discounting the statements in the mission itself. It just wasn’t their problem, so they didn’t have to worry about it. Team B’s discussion centered around what they described as “the harsh reality that equitable conditions for all students do not exist within the school policies, practices, and procedures, and that decisions are made to lower expectations for students who struggle, so not all students are educated to the highest levels of academic achievement as stated in the mission.” They talked openly and honestly about the factors contributing to the misalignment between what the mission states and their own actions as a team. One team member said, “We can change this. We can choose to keep expectations high for all students and figure out together how to ensure that grade-level content is accessible for all students.” They put their heads together and began brainstorming ways to resolve the disconnects they identified. Is your team functioning more like Team A or Team B? Team A chose to approach the dissonance by blaming, avoiding, and discounting the mission itself. Refuse to allow this on your team. Refuse to blame, avoid, and discount; these behaviors will not help our students learn and grow. It might make us feel better in the moment and resolve the uncomfortable feeling that dissonance brings, but it will only perpetuate the cycle of mediocrity. Here’s the reality: there are teams everywhere that, despite the factors that Team A described, are improving outcomes for students. Check out allthingsplc.info to learn more about some of these schools. The bottom line is that when we examine our actions and behaviors and identify a misalignment between what we say we do and what we actually do, it can be a catalyst for change. We have the power to change outcomes for students when we embrace the dissonance and truly own it like Team B did. High-functioning collaborative teams embrace the discomfort and use it to shift practices and procedures. Collaborative teams need to get comfortable with the discomfort and embrace it. As they work to improve outcomes for students, there will be more dissonance and it will be uncomfortable. When

embraced, this discomfort can be a healthy and powerful process for members of a collaborative team. As teams navigate their work, it is certain they will encounter change and the discomfort that change presents. Rick DuFour (2007) reminds us, “Hosts of researchers have concluded that substantive change inevitably creates discomfort and dissonance as people are asked to act in new ways (Marzano, Waters, & McNulty, 2005; Fullan, 2005; Sarason, 1996); we cannot avoid the discomfort, but we can determine how we will respond when the going gets tough.” How will your team respond when the going gets tough? We hope you will lean into the discomfort and respond in positive and productive ways that truly change outcomes for students.

References Brown, B. (2022). Atlas of the heart: Mapping meaningful connection and the language of human experience. New York: Random House. DuFour, R. (2007). Professional learning communities: A bandwagon, an idea worth considering, or our best hope for high levels of learning? Middle School Journal, 39(1), 4–8. Festinger, L. (1957). A theory of cognitive dissonance. Redwood City, CA: Stanford University Press. Fullan, M. (2005). Leadership and sustainability: System thinkers in action. San Francisco: Corwin Press. Marzano, R., Waters, T., & McNulty, B. (2005). School leadership that works: From research to results. Alexandria, VA: Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development. Sarason, S. (1996). Revisiting the culture of the school and the problem of change. New York: Teachers College Press.

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Motivation Myths New research shows that what we thought were commonsense practices for student engagement may not actually be the best for academic drive. Three beliefs are considered: (1) “to motivate students for a difficult task, it’s important to make it fun and entertaining”; (2) “a student who needs a bit of a push on homework just needs some advice from their teacher”; and (3) “getting students to set goals for themselves is the most important way to motivate them.”

seem to have any effect on young students’ behavior or attendance overall,” but students who are required to wear uniforms did report “lower levels of school belonging in fifth grade than did students in schools without uniforms.” Neither did school uniforms affect any differences in bullying or anxiety among students.

A national study out of The Ohio State University finds that school uniforms aren’t as beneficial as parents and teachers previously thought. Even though school uniforms are becoming more popular, this study finds that “school uniforms don’t

Anti-Trafficking Education

Read more: “School Uniforms Don’t Improve Child Behavior, Study Finds,” by Jeff Grabmeier. ScienceDaily. https:// tinyurl.com/mrya7ayn

Nearly a fourth of human trafficking survivors report that they were trafficked before age 18. In response, educators across the United States are trying to create prevention and education programs to effectively teach minors about the risks and warning signs of human trafficking. Lumina Albert, executive director of the Center for Ethics and Human Rights at Colorado State University, offers five objectives in creating anti-trafficking education programs: (1) create a safe haven, (2) pay attention to triggers, (3) be inclusive, (4) dispel misconceptions and stereotypes, and (5) use appropriate touch and tone.

Supporting 2e Students

Read more: “Schools Join the Fight Against Human Trafficking,” by Lumina Albert. The Conversation. https://tinyurl. com/4be9tbk5

Read more: “Three Counterintuitive Findings About Motivation That Teachers Can Use,” by Sarah D. Sparks. Education Week. https://tinyurl.com/y6ekwtks

The School Uniform Effect

Read more: “How to Support Your Twice-Exceptional Child,” by Linda Lee Baird. U.S. News & World Report. https:// tinyurl.com/2p8sk85t

Twice-exceptional (2e) students both have a learning difference and are academically gifted and often struggle to get their needs met in school. “Twice-exceptional children commonly experience either a missed diagnosis, where their gifted abilities mask underlying academic challenges, or a misdiagnosis, where behavior or learning differences mask their academic talents.” But with greater awareness, parents and teachers are learning how to identify and support these students. Volume 6, Issue 3/AllThingsPLC Magazine

The Dysfunctions of a Team Nathaniel Provencio

n my recent work as an educational consultant, I have often been asked to help grade-level teams function as highperforming collaborative teams. This request by far surpasses requests to assist with developing leadership, enhancing differentiated instruction, establishing a system of interventions, examining assessments and results, revamping vision and mission statements, and establishing collective commitments. However, a school can’t truly have consistently high-performing collaborative grade-level or department teams without first focusing on all of the foundational aspects of professional learning communities. So, when I am asked to help support the collaborative efforts of grade-level teams, I first ask questions about the school’s vision and mission. I ask if the school’s vision and mission provide a clear, compelling purpose for the school that explicitly fosters a culture of collaboration in which all members are mutually accountable for the success of all students. I ask about the school’s focus on results and whether all stakeholders have a true transparent understanding of the specific goals the school, teams, teachers, and students are working to achieve. I ask if the school has collaboratively created collective commitments that outline the tangible and specific actions and behaviors each teacher has agreed on as part of the school’s culture. I ask whether the school has outlined specific frameworks that ensure a clear understanding of standards, assessments, and highly effective instructional and differentiated practices. Those schools and districts that have a strong vision and mission, collective commitments, and a clear focus on instruction and results also have a strong culture of collaboration. There-

AllThingsPLC Magazine/Volume 6, Issue 3

fore, my work to assist schools with their culture of collaboration is in tandem with efforts to assist all aspects of professional learning communities.

One resource that I have found greatly assists with this work is Patrick Lencioni’s (2002) The Five Dysfunctions of a Team. In this book, Lencioni discusses five key dysfunctions that team members must be aware of in order to improve on their growth as a strong collaborative team.

The first and most important dysfunction is the absence of trust. Trust requires teams to be vulnerable and have the courage to know what they don’t know in order to grow within their areas of expertise. The second dysfunction is a fear of conflict. Healthy conflict between team members is vital in strong teams because it allows individuals to speak their opinions without fear of ridicule, judgment, or retribution. The third dysfunction is a lack of commitment. Commitment follows healthy conflict and ensures all members are committed to carrying out the actions needed to achieve results. The fourth dysfunction is the avoidance of accountability. To take accountability requires prior commitment to and complete buy-in of the decisions and actions established by the team. Finally, the last dysfunction is an inattention to results. Teams ultimately fail when they neglect to use their collective results to measure their effectiveness.

1 Absence of Trust

There is a strong correlation between Lencioni’s five dysfunctions of a team and the work of professional learning community cultures.

Let’s look at each.

I want to reiterate the importance of a school’s vision, mission, and collective commitments. In understanding these three statements, all educators and support staff should be crystal clear on their school’s goals and the specific actions they should be taking in order to achieve high levels of learning for all students. An effective school vision statement, like any successful corporate vision statement, clearly articulates what the school will achieve. An effective mission statement describes the major steps needed for a school to achieve that vision, and effective collective commitments describe the specific actions each teacher will take to carry out that mission. When a school is living by its vision, mission, and collective commitments, it has ultimately spelled out the actions of the staff in the building— and of those who shouldn’t be in the building. These vital statements can be the cultural adhesive that helps both individuals and teams coalesce in working collaboratively to carry out the work of a PLC. When schools do not have strong vision, mission, and collective commitment statements, staff are left to figure things out on their own, possibly reverting to self-serving actions with no righteous cause or collective goal. Such schools, in turn, have a greater chance of creating a culture of ego, personality, tenure, and ineffective instructional practices. These types of environments can diminish the fresh insights and ideas of new teachers, ostracize diverse viewpoints, and ignore the assistance of support specialists, significantly destroying a culture of trust. When it comes to trust in a PLC, a vital question must be asked: do we truly trust all educators in the building—including ourselves—to do their part in ensuring each student is successful? The collaborative creation and understanding of a school’s vision, mission, and collective commitments work as a guiding light to ensure the right people are placed together at the right time in order to do the right work. A strong culture of trust allows every teacher, staff member, support specialist, and administrator to have a valued say in the examination and interpretation of the standards; insight and perspective on the creation or refinement of assessments; shared contribution to and evaluation of the strategies, activities, resources, and materials used for the unit; ideas and input on remediation and enrichment methods; the opportunity to analyze student assessment results; and a voice in refining instructional practices to ensure all students are learning at high levels.

Volume 6, Issue 3/AllThingsPLC Magazine

2 Fear of Conflict For many educators, the word conflict is not seen as something positive. It connotes hurt feelings, strong emotions, winners, and losers. However, a PLC is an ongoing process in which educators work collaboratively in recurring cycles of action research and collective inquiry to achieve better results for the students they serve (DuFour, DuFour, Eaker, & Many, 2010). Therefore, conflict in a PLC means that each member has value and is valued. Regardless of tenure, position, title, or job description, all members of a professional learning community have value and can offer unique and diverse perspectives on a problem. Team members who truly trust one another to be the best collaborative educator they can be are going to embrace their team members’ diverse and unique brands of passion, insight, perspective, and outlook. In order to do this, a team must engage in strong, honest, and collaborative dialogue and debate around the shared understanding of essential learning standards and objectives, the creation and understanding of mutually agreed on formative and summative assessments, the decisions about which lessons, strategies, methods, techniques, and resources will be best suited to meet the diverse needs of learners, and how to best remediate and enrich instruction for learners. When team members trust each other, they embrace constructive, collaborative conflict, which only strengthens the learning for all educators. In my work as an educator, I have found that different personality types can have an impact on how teachers work together. In any team, whether in the business arena, the sports world, or even a family, you will find that not everyone is going to perfectly get along all the time. Some people are extroverts, some people are introverts, some are people are both. Some have a sarcastic sense of humor, some have a dry sense of humor, some have no sense of humor. Some have significant challenges outside of the school, and some may want to work in the school 24-7. Members of highly effective grade-level or department teams do not have to be best friends in order to be effective. They do, however, have to all truly believe and buy into the vision and mission of the school and understand the specific actions needed to ensure excellence for all students. These teachers, regardless of their background, personality, or experience, can collectively engage in strong dialogue and debate to enhance their individual and collective professional growth. So, the question to ask is: are we willing to engage in healthy conflict with each other to demand that each child receives a high-quality education? 28

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3 Lack of Commitment Strong team commitment is about clarity and mutual agreement. The four critical questions—What is it all students will be learning? How will we know when our students have learned it? How will we respond when our students have not learned it? How will we enrich and extend the learning for students who have learned it?—are paramount in the area of commitment because team members must trust each other and have engaged in healthy dialogue and debate in order to answer the questions. Strong team commitment means that all team members have shared and balanced ownership and buy-in on the work needed to ensure an effective unit has been planned and will be carried out. Alignment between teachers becomes seamless when they are truly committed to their team’s collaborative actions. When commitment is made, teachers understand that what is best for one classroom is probably also best for the other classrooms. When teams are truly committed to their collaborative work, you will find consistency in how classroom objectives are posted and shared. You will find alignment in the pacing and delivery of instructional activities and lessons. You will find consistent use of effective resources and materials and in the utilization of assessments. Strong collaborative team commitment works to ensure that schools do not have an “education lottery,” where one teacher is highly impactful and successful at the expense of the other team members. If teachers in a collaborative team have a shared commitment, then they will have shared excellence. When it comes to having strong commitment, the vital question to be asked is: are we all 100 percent committed to ensuring the instructional standards are understood and effective lessons, strategies, resources, and materials will be utilized to guarantee all students will learn at high levels?

PROFESSIONAL LEARNING

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or more of the four critical questions of PLC at Work®

Building a culture of collaboration

is truly vital to any school looking to improve learning results. A culture of collaboration cannot be built, however, without fostering all the aspects of a professional learning community. In an attempt to grow effective collaboration, school leaders can create sophisticated planning agendas, templates, and protocols. They can carve out as much time as possible during an instructional day for teams to work together and compensate teachers for their planning efforts. They can even send teams to team-building workshops and institutes. While all these efforts are important and may be needed, a strong culture of collaboration truly stems from striving to be a highly effective collaborative team. Highly effective collaborative team members trust each other to bring their best and to be the best for students every day. They have a willingness to engage in healthy dialogue and debate around answering the four critical questions. They are committed to the actions and steps necessary to ensure high levels of learning for each student, lesson by lesson and unit by unit. They hold themselves and each other accountable for those actions and steps. And finally, they take collective responsibility for the results of their actions in ensuring excellence for all students.

Nathaniel Provencio is the CEO of ProvenPrincipal LLC, an educational leadership consulting firm. He is the author of Community Connections and Your PLC at Work and has served as a teacher, principal, and associate superintendent. Under his leadership, Minnieville Elementary was recognized as a Model Professional Learning Community and was the 2019 winner of the prestigious DuFour Award.

References DuFour, R., DuFour, R., Eaker, R., & Many, T. (2010). Learning by doing: A handbook for Professional Learning Communities at Work (2nd ed). Bloomington, IN: Solution Tree Press. Lencioni, P. M. (2002). The five dysfunctions of a team: A leadership fable. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.

Discussion Questions 1

How is the PLC’s mission related to the five dysfunctions?

How is the PLC’s vision related to the five dysfunctions?

How are the PLC’s collective

commitments related to the five dysfunctions?

Are we committed to using student, teacher, team, and school results to justify our actions?

Results

Accountability

Commitment

Conflict

Trust

Are we willing to hold ourselves and each other accountable for the success and failure of each student?

Is each team member 100% commited to the understanding of the standards, assessments, and instructional strategies needed to ensure high levels of learning for all students?

Are we willing to engage in healthy conflict with each other to demand that each child receives a high-quality education?

Do we trust all educators to do their part in ensuring all students will learn at high levels?

Volume 6, Issue 3/AllThingsPLC Magazine

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This magazine helped reinforce the importance of wellfunctioning PLCs in our district.” —Virginia Bennett, executive director of academic support services, Bulloch County Schools, Georgia

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THE RECOMMENDER Karen Johnson

What's Equity Got to Do With It? No, that’s not a catchy title for a new Tina Turner song; it’s a question that comes up time and time again when I talk to people about the power of a professional learning community at achieving educational equity. And my answer is, quite simply, “Everything.” Educational equity is defined by the National Equity Project (nationalequity project.org) as “reducing the predictability of who succeeds and who fails and interrupting the practices that negatively impact students.” And isn’t that what being part of a Professional Learning Community at Work is all about? When we start with a passionate belief that all students can learn at high levels and that it is ultimately our job to work together to ensure that happens no matter what, aren’t we interrupting practices that have for so long resulted in wider and wider gaps for some of our students? When we focus on using evidence of student learning as a means of informing what we are doing in the classroom and have intentional conversations about how we might tailor our instruction to meet the needs of more kids more of the time, aren’t we reducing the predictability of who succeeds and who fails? When we give kids what they need when they need it and don’t wait for them to fail or get a diagnosis or a piece of paper that says they need it, aren’t we working toward educational equity? For these reasons, every educator who is working toward providing their students with educational equity must have a copy of Learning by Doing: A Handbook for Professional Learning Communities at Work by Richard DuFour, Rebecca DuFour, Robert Eaker, Thomas Many, and Mike Mattos in their library. Any plan for ensuring access for all students must be grounded in the culture and structures of a professional learning community, and there is no better book for laying out the foundations of a PLC than Learning by Doing. I call it my “PLC bible.” Sometimes when we start the work of disrupting systems and implementing change, we need resources that focus specifically on how to transform our school or district culture. My favorite book that focuses specifically on culture is Starting a Movement: Building Culture From the Inside Out in Professional Learning Communities by Kenneth Williams and Tom Hierck. My favorite

chapter, the one that is marked up, underlined, and sticky-noted all over the place is the very first chapter, “Wanted: Leaders at Every Level.” It’s all about the power and role of a guiding coalition as well as ways to move toward consensus. Another book that helps with building both culture and structure for true equity is Leading for All: How to Create Truly Inclusive and Excellent Schools by Jennifer Spencer-Iiams and Josh Flosi. This book provides practical steps that both school and district leaders can take to build a more inclusive environment. The authors share not only the steps they have taken over the years to serve all students in their neighborhood schools but also lessons they have learned along the way. Finally, we can’t have conversations about equity in our schools without mentioning Yes We Can!: General and Special Educators Collaborating in a Professional Learning Community by Heather Friziellie, Julie Schmidt, and Jeanne Spiller. Everything in this book about how to ensure that every child in our schools is successful is so commonsense, yet we don’t think of it until we read it. The ideas are so simple—such as including both general education and special education teachers in the conversations about essential standards and IEP goals so that everyone is on the same page—that it’s a wonder we don’t do them from the start.

KAREN JOHNSON is a Solution Tree Associate with over 20 years of leading and championing the work of educational equity in schools. She has served as a classroom teacher, professional development specialist, and site administrator at both the elementary and middle school levels.

Volume 6, Issue 3/AllThingsPLC Magazine

SKILL

SHOP

Balancing Goals With Well-Being Teams must focus and support two areas if they are to succeed: (1) the tasks necessary to meet the team’s set goals and objectives and (2) the social, emotional, and other human factors critical to the well-being of its members (West, 2012). Both criteria can be met by taking the time to create a list of actions that are meaningful and manageable. Record all the tasks your team is currently trying to accomplish. Next, review the biggest priorities: the four critical questions of a PLC (DuFour, DuFour, Eaker, Many, & Mattos, 2016) and your school’s collective commitments. From there, cross off those tasks that are not a priority and create a new, manageable list of actions focused on what is most important for student learning. Source: Kramer, S. V. (2021). Charting the course for leaders: Lessons from Priority Schools in a PLC at Work. Bloomington, IN: Solution Tree Press.

AllThingsPLC Magazine/Volume 6, Issue 3

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Volume 6, Issue 3/AllThingsPLC Magazine

, ound ight s m a ? e k r o n id s it w OD a nal t doe u W GO b O uctio , r H s t s e R Y in “ E , y T AT know om, m ollect NO M ant to lassro w c s y r ten c e m ect ition als of ff earch ip a c ly in pract e rly res d pr la n o ositiv a PLCs h p c s it r akes but s Can ache m , e t ls T a o ” o wh ice? fly to er sch rstanding pract u brie m oth e o o d are y r f n e u s e. Sh duc o ic s to t r e t storie c t a in u r l o p n wil s in ontrib rs wh also c . This colum about PLC olicymake and h tive tively, and p searc c s e e r e effec ff y u e r a re eag mpor k mo h coll conte s wor is wit C s L p P n o w . yn ke your o this s to ma n w o o e r h o er arn m wond r to le e p e e dig d

IN SEARCH OF

BEST PRACTICE Heather K. Dillard

The Study Goodnough, K. (2011). Examining the long-term impact of collaborative action research on teacher identity and practice: The perceptions of K–12 teachers. Educational Action Research, 19(1), 73–86. We live in a time when teachers are pressured to use best practice. It is also a time when individuals question everything. In terms of best practice, questions that might arise are: Who says which practice is best? How does that get determined? Just because something is best for one, does that make it best for all? This level of curiosity is good and should propel the work of the teaching profession. This article provides data to support the use of teachers working collaboratively to seek answers to the questions they collectively share. Karen Goodnough conducted a qualitative phenomenological study of 10 science teachers engaging in action research. This longitudinal study spanned four years. The 10 participants were among 50 total teachers from three different school districts who completed a one-year action research project. These teachers were members of collaborative teams consisting of two to four members. Each participant was interviewed 46

AllThingsPLC Magazine/Volume 6, Issue 3

separately, a total of three times, for 60–90 minutes. Interviews occurred before they engaged in the action research, during the study, and again two to four years after completing the study. Teachers met regularly to first gain an understanding of action research. Once training was complete, additional meetings provided support during the planning of their projects as well as a forum for sharing insights and to foster reflections for individuals and groups. The research questions that drove this study were:

· How have teacher identity and self-knowledge been impacted by being involved in collaborative action research?

· How has teacher participation in collaborative action research impacted professional practice?

· How has teacher engagement in collaborative action research affected the broader context of education?

The Findings Data analysis for the first research question revealed two separate themes addressing teachers’ personal learning and that of the

Research Report students. Engaging in collective action research caused the individual teachers’ self-efficacy toward teaching the subject matter to grow. The teachers felt “more confident in their ability to grapple with new science content and to communicate that content to students in effective ways” (p. 79). Now viewing themselves as “critical learners,” these teachers were no longer fearful about their own teaching abilities or in asking for help from a colleague. Moreover, the teachers had a different view of the students with “a much greater appreciation for the need to cater to the diverse learning needs of students” (p. 79). After participating in their own action research, the teachers “changed their beliefs about learners” as they recognized the complexities of both learners and learning. Regarding the second research question, all participants continued using the practices they explored in their action research. They felt the experience had caused them to think more critically about their own practice and kept them “interested and motivated . . . to try new things” (p. 80). They considered themselves a more reflective practitioner as they were “now more aware of the need to be reflective and examine their thinking and actions in a more explicit manner” (p. 81). Furthermore, they welcomed the opportunity for additional collaborative action research, stating that their work was “all for improving student learning” (p. 81). Finally, the data for the third research question indicated the teachers had a greater appreciation for working collaboratively with their colleagues. They reported that an additional benefit of conducting action research with their team members was in their collegial relationships being strengthened. These team members now had a common ground and common language to speak when they met together. Implications for PLCs When researchers Rick DuFour and Bob Eaker first began crafting the PLC process in the 1990s, they were intentional about their choice of words. Professional was chosen because of its meaning, “someone with expertise in a specialized field, who is expected to remain current in its evolving knowledge base” (DuFour et al., 2008, p. 19). Their definition for professional learning communities reads as “an ongoing process

in which educators work collaboratively in recurring cycles of collective inquiry and action research to achieve better results for the students they serve” (DuFour et al., 2008, p. 14). This definition explains what is happening in a PLC: educators are working collaboratively. It defines why the collaboration occurs: so students can achieve better results. Most importantly, it explains how the work occurs: in cycles of collective inquiry and action research. Teacher teams should be continuously searching for answers to the specific needs of the students they serve. After analyzing the data for a common assessment, the team identifies one or more learning gaps for individual students. These learning gaps indicate a problem that needs to be addressed. More than likely, on initial teaching, the teachers utilized the best teaching practice within their arsenal. With data in hand to indicate some students did not receive the information being taught, the team should recognize that now is the time to explore other options. In the book The Handbook for Collaborative Common Assessments: Tools for Design, Delivery, and Data Analysis, Cassandra Erkens (2019) provides a protocol for teams to first identify research-based best practices and then design and implement an action research plan. Utilizing this system allows teachers to address the specific learning needs of each individual student. School leaders should never assume that teachers instinctively know how to productively inquire about best practices or conducting action research. This is a process that first needs to be taught. Erkens’s (2019) protocols can provide the necessary skills teachers need to do this work. Through this learning, the teacher teams will then have the ability to determine what is the best practice for the specific students they serve. References DuFour, R., DuFour, R., & Eaker, R. (2008). Revisiting Professional Learning Communities at Work: New insights for improving schools. Bloomington, IN: Solution Tree Press. Erkens, C. (2019). The handbook for collaborative common assessments: Tools for design, delivery, and data analysis. Bloomington, IN: Solution Tree Press. Heather K. Dillard, associate professor at Middle Tennessee State University, teaches the Schools as Professional Learning Communities course in the Assessment, Learning, and School Improvement Doctoral Program.

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